Category / innovation

Universities increase income from business collaboration

Business Engagement, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, Knowledge Transfer, Research news

Technology in the hands

UK universities earned £4.2 billion from provision of services to businesses and collaborative research in the 2014-15 academic year, up from £3.9bn the previous year.
The latest Higher Education Business and Community Interaction Survey (2014 – 2015), published on 7 April by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, looked at all publicly funded UK higher education institutions and their interactions with businesses and other organisations.
In 2014-15, the largest chunk of this income was from collaborative research involving public funding, which reached £1.26bn, up from £1.14bn in the previous year. This was a change in emphasis, as in 2013-14 universities gained most of their income from contract research. However, contract research earnings also increased between 2013-14 and 2014-15, from £1.2bn to £1.21bn.

Universities also upped their earnings from courses for business and the community by £35m to £715m, from regeneration and development programmes by almost £22m to £205m, and from intellectual property by £24m to £155m.

The analysis also includes information on the number of spinouts and start-up companies created by UK universities, and shows that the number of graduate start-up companies created in 2014-15 was 4,160, lower than the 4,581 companies started in 2013-14.

However, the total number of active firms with some involvement from a higher education provider in the UK was 13,045 in 2014-15, up from 11,856 in 2013-14.

The Higher Education Funding Council for England will publish its analysis of the data for England later in the year.

This article was posted in Research Professional.

You can set up your own personalised alerts including news  on Research Professional. If you need help setting these up, just ask your School’s/Faculty’s Funding Development Officer in RKEO or view the recent blog post here.

 

 

Innovate UK launch new delivery plan – key sectors and funding opportunties included

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, Knowledge Transfer, Knowledge Transfer Partnership, Research news

InnovateUK_LogoA_Interim_RGBx320govuk[1]

Innovate UK have launched their delivery plan for 2016/17 .

This  includes:

  • a new sector focus that is easier for industry, investors and government to work with
  • a 5-point plan to underpin activity across these sectors and drive productivity growth
  • clearer funding programmes that are easier to navigate
  • improvements to the way Innovate UK connects businesses to knowledge and partners
  • a stronger regional presence

With evidence of :”focusing ever more closely on scaling up SMEs” …

Clearer sector support has been established and these include four groups:

  • emerging and enabling technologies
  • health and life sciences
  • infrastructure systems
  • manufacturing and materials

Funding competitions for businesses are also to be simplified.

There will be 2 broad funding competitions covering each sector group per year, and 2 open competitions for applications from any sector or technology area. There will be other programmes and competitions in partnership with other government organisations.

Click here fore more information. 

Download the Delivery Plan.

Researching innovative pedagogy: An Evaluation of Team-based Learning

BU research, Centre for Excellence in Learning, conferences, Events, Fusion, innovation, Research communication

An Evaluation of Team-based Learning – 4-5pm in PG11, Wednesday 13th of April 2016

What is Team-based Learning?

Team-based Learning (TBL) is an example of the ‘flipped classroom’ concept whereby what might be described as traditional teaching content is accessed by students outside of the classroom while activities that might be termed ‘homework’ are conducted in class. In class, students have to answer questions as individuals to test them on their learning from the set pre-reading activities (termed the individual Readiness Assurance Test), then the same questions in allocated teams (team Readiness Assurance Test). Each team has a scratch card so that students can check if their agreed answer is correct (immediate feedback). Following that, teams then work on application exercises, where they have to apply their knowledge to problem-solving real-life scenarios.

Why bother with this approach?

TBL is thought to confer some advantages over traditional teaching methods in terms of student engagement and provides immediate feedback on student performance. While it does tend to mean some extra work for lecturers in terms of preparation activities, increased job satisfaction is commonly reported, and students report enjoying learning in this way. It is believed to improve critical thinking skills and in some cases improved exam performance has been reported. Further, this collaborative learning process promotes the importance of effective team-working, a skill desired of our graduates by many employers.

Do you want to find out more?

I am delivering a session on TBL at the CELebrate Conference 2016 next week. In this session, you will be introduced to TBL and get to experience a TBL session yourself! Quantitative (using the validated TBL-SAI instrument) and qualitative (focus group discussions) results from an evaluation of the implementation of TBL into a unit on the Adult Nursing degree programme will also be presented.

What to do now?

  1. Click here to watch this video before the session (it’s less than four minutes) -it’s a snippet from my online lecture on circulatory shock. Don’t panic if you’ve little knowledge regarding human physiology, it’s only to help illustrate the TBL approach – hopefully you’ll enjoy it!
  2. Then click here to book onto the session

Best wishes

Dr Jonny Branney

Creative England – latest funding opportuntites

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, Knowledge Transfer

Creative England is dedicated to the growth  of the creative industries. A key aim is to investin talented people across games, TV, film and digital media.
Latest funnds, garnts and loans currently available by Creative England and their partners can be found here.
If you are interested in submitting to any of the above calls you must contact RKEO with adequate notice before the deadline.

Please note that some funding bodies specify a time for submission as well as a date. Please confirm this with your RKEO Funding Development Officer

You can set up your own personalised alerts on Research Professional. If you need help setting these up, just ask your School’s/Faculty’s Funding Development Officer in RKEO or view the recent blog post here.

If thinking of applying, why not add notification of your interest on Research Professional’s record of the bid so that BU colleagues can see your intention to bid and contact you to collaborate.

VOOM 2016: Pitch to Richard Branson to win a share of £1M in prizes

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

VOOM 2016 takes place over 14 weeks, including a huge public vote, a 29-hour Pitchathon (a Guinness World Records attempt, in fact), and a series of competitive face-to-face workshops.

Competition finalists will have the opportunity to pitch to Richard Branson and the six winning businesses will share over £1 million (€1.2 million) in prizes, plus additional support.

There are two categories:

  • START-UP – aimed at early stage start-up businesses
  • GROW – for businesses with revenue that are looking to grow

The winner of each category will receive social and PR support, a broadband and telecoms package, a carriage wrap on Virgin Trains, mentoring, financial advice, a £50,000 (€60,000) cash prize and much more. There are also prize packages for four runners up.

Crowdfunder are offering you the chance to run a crowdfunding campaign on top of (and as an integral part of) your competition entry. So while you are working hard to secure public support for your entry, you could also raise money at the same time.

The competition also allows you to put yourself forward for awards within your category:

  • The Impact Award – for businesses that put social and environmental impact, as well as profit, at the heart of their business
  • The Great Award – for businesses that fly the flag for Great Britain
  • The Crowdfunder Award – for those businesses that run a crowdfunding campaign in parallel with their competition entry

Key dates:

Public vote opens: 5 April 2016

Applications close: 10 May 2016

Voting closes: 23 May 2016

Find out more at https://www.vmbvoom.com

Digital vision of future local government – connecting our lives in 2025

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, Knowledge Transfer, Research news, Research themes

nesta_logo

The report , Connected Councils, explores how councils can use digital tools to transform the way they work and save a potential £14.7 billion every year.

Digital technologies, from apps to online platforms, can help councils provide better services for their residents and mobilise communities to work alongside these services, as well as find new ways of collecting and analysing data, which could have a significant impact on the quality of future services.

Through a series of case studies the report imagines what life might be like in 2025 for ‘digital by default’ councils and their citizens – from retirees to young graduates and new parents.

Key Findings

Local government has made huge progress in enabling residents to carry out basic transactions online. But most councils have a long way to go to deliver smooth, frictionless services and fully digitise their back offices. Digitisation isn’t just about developing digital services; depending on the level of ambition, digital tools can help:

  • Save money and deliver better outcomes by intervening earlier and helping people manage their own conditions.
  • Transform the way that councils work internally, commission services and partners, diagnose and solve problems, use public space, and attract talent.
  • Make services smoother and easier to access, more personalised and user-responsive.
  • Put residents at the heart of local problem-solving and decision-making and create an environment which supports businesses to startup and scale.

The 2025 vision

Like the best tech companies, future councils will be lean, agile and data-driven. Siloed services will be replaced with multi-agency teams that form around specific local challenges. A truly mobile workforce has freed up public space. Almost all transactions take place online. Instead of two-dimensional council websites, interactive platforms connect users with third-party apps and services, and stream personalised content on local democracy, jobs and services.

Relational services (such as social care) still rely heavily on face-to-face contact. But digital tools help people to manage their own long-term conditions and connect to a broader network of support, such as peer mentors, health coaches, friends and family, volunteers and group-based activities. Digital technologies have helped councils take a more ambitious approach to place-shaping. A larger share of public contracts go to high-growth SMEs. Councils systematically engage residents in decisions about how services are commissioned, delivered and evaluated.

Read the report in full.

 

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Creative Digital & Design – Horizon 2020

Business Engagement, EU, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange

Innovate UK have put together a very useful list of upcoming funding calls relating to Horizon 2020 funding. There are also links to other sources of information including events and their Guide to Horizon 2020 and Other InnovateUK_LogoA_Interim_RGBx320govuk[1]European Funding for the Creative Industries.

This information is provided freely to members of the _connect Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN) Creative Digital  & Design. There are currently 16 KTNs plus many other groups. Whatever your discipline, there will be a group to which you can contribute and promote your research interests.

Why not take a look and register to receive updates direct to your inbox? 

“Designing ‘Playful’ Business Events” – Dr Phil Crowther (Sheffield Hallam University) visiting BU

BU research, Events, innovation

Dr Phil Crowther, from Sheffield Hallam University (Sheffield Business School), will be on a short visit to BU where he will meet researchers from the Department of Events and Leisure to exchange and explore potential research opportunities (8th March 2016).

“Designing ‘Playful’ Business Events” is the title of his guest lecture, where Dr Phil Crowther explores the very serious nature of play in the design of business events.

We invite you to join this session, to the limit of seating capacity, on the 8th March 2016, Allesbrook Lecture Hall (Talbot Campus), 1 p.m.

For a little bit more on Dr Phil Crowther, please read below his story in the first person.

Would you like to know more details on this visit or to join us in the research meeting programme, please email Dr Lenia Marques, lmarques@bournemouth.ac.uk .

Phil Crowther

My first degree was in Recreation Management from Loughborough University, graduating in 1995. Since then I have enjoyed a career in recreation / leisure / tourism / event management for eleven years, running cinemas, theme parks, and health and racquet clubs as General Manager.  During this time I had the pleasure of designing and delivering such highlights as film premiers, celebrity birthday parties, and large team building events.  During my industry career I completed a part-time MBA in Executive General Management which was my pathway back into universities. Since then I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching, researching, and delivering continuing professional development (CPD) events and consultancy in the area of Event Management.

My teaching focuses heavily on strategy and events, leading teaching on modules such as Event Policy and Planning, Strategic Event Design, and Strategic Event Creation.  My research focusses specifically upon Marketing Events, part of the Experiential Marketing eruption, and I have published a number of journal papers.  I have recently edited a book entitled Strategic Event Creation with colleagues which sets out an agenda for the practice, and teaching, of events.   Most recently completed my PhD entitled ‘Strategic Application of Marketing Events’ which continues to be my main interest.   

 Beyond that I have two fabulous daughter, a wonderful partner, and two amazing dogs called Baxter and Will.  I also have a passion for running and was most recently, in January this year, running the Hong Kong Marathon in pouring rain.

Call for Ideas – Your view counts!

BU Challenges, EU, innovation

The European Commission has launched a Call for Ideas for a European Innovation Council to support Europe’s most promising innovators.question mark

Commissioner Moedas launched the Call for ideas at the Science|Business Annual Conference in Brussels. He said that “Europe has excellent science, but we lack disruptive market-creating innovation. This is what is needed to turn our best ideas into new jobs, businesses and opportunities.” While the number of start-ups created in Europe is on a par with competitors such as the United States, Europe lags behind in disruptive innovation and in scaling start-ups into world-beating businesses. A European Innovation Council could contribute to solving this problem.

To find out more and to participate in this survey, please go to the European Innovation Council website, where you can also view background documents and position papers.

The deadline for survey completion in 29 April 2016.

 

Creative England – Interest free business loans now open for applications

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

creativeengland1_0

Creative England would  like to hear from creative digital companies who need anything from £50k – £200k in order to grow their business.

Eligible companies include those across content creation, games, tech and digital based in any of the English regions outside of Greater London. The interest-free loan is repaid over 3 years, and must be matched 50:50 with an alternative source of finance.

For more information please read the  FAQ’s and application guidelines.

You can also get in touch with kate.adam@creativeengland.co.uk for any further questions.

If you’re not sure if a Business Loan is quite right for the stage your company is at, then take a look at the  Equity Investment Programme, offering £40k – £100k of equity investment for digital SME’s.

Working with start-ups and small businesses?

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

Technology in the hands

Innovate UK’s 5 tips to secure funding for start-ups and small businesses

Innovate UK have just launched their essential advice and tips on securing funding. Whether a start-up, small business or SME this video is worth watching. This can be found on you tube and worth bookmarking this for further advice on funding coming soon. Stay tuned, more essential selections videos will be published soon including networking, grants, pitching, business planning and more.

Click here for the video.

Check out the Innovate UK website for competitons and funding calls listed by sector.

2016 Geovation Challenge – ‘How can we better manage water in Britain, sustainably?’

Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, Research news

Environment

Competition offering cash prizes for the most innovative ideas that can be turned into a commercial success. The 2016 Geovation Challenge question is ‘How can we better manage water in Britain, sustainably?’

Funding body:                      Ordnance Survey
Maximum value:                  £ 20,000
Application deadline:          27/01/2016
Location:                               United Kingdom

Background

The Geovation Challenge was initiated, funded and managed by Ordnance Survey. Its current collaborators include Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, Environment Agency, OCG, Springwise and United Utilities.

Objectives of Fund

The GeoVation Challenge aims to encourage open collaboration in addressing communities’ needs where geography is a key enabler. Open innovation, data, tools and information can be combined to create new ventures which generate social and environmental value.

The current GeoVation Challenge is focused on tackling the global issues around water. The Geovation Challenge question is ‘How can we improve water use in Britain sustainably?

Value Notes

The Programme is divided into two parts:

  • Part one (phases one to three over a period of six months) provides a total of £10,000 in funding.
  • Part two (for those who successfully deliver a prototype at the end of this and move on to phase four which is another six months on the Programme) provides an additional £10,000 in funding.

Funding will be given during each of the phases to progress the idea to the next level.

Those who are successful at phase four will receive help in seeking extra funding so that they have more than one source of investment and can move toward product launch.

Match Funding Restrictions

Match funding is not a specified requirement.

 Who Can Apply

The Challenge is open to UK based organisations and residents over 18 years of age. This includes community groups, entrepreneurs, developers, innovators and local authorities.

Those who join the Programme will be expected to spend a minimum of 20 hours per week working on their project and attending core workshops at the Geovation Hub in London.

Restrictions

The following cannot enter the competition:

  • Members of the civil service.
  • Individuals involved in the administration of the GeoVation Awards Programme.

Eligible Expenditure

This year’s GeoVation Challenge is focused on tackling the global issues around water.

Ideas must help address the GeoVation Challenge question: ‘How can we better manage water in Britain, sustainably?’

The Geovation Water Challenge is focusing on five themes:

  • Too little water.
  • Too much water.
  • Poor water quality.
  • Ageing infrastructure.
  • Water use behaviour.

How To Apply

Deadline(s):

The deadine for submission is 27 January 2016.

Frequency: Biannual

Link to guidelines: https://geovation.uk/challenge/#challenge

Useful Links

GeoVation
http://www.geovation.org.uk/

Geovation Challenge 2015: Water
https://geovation.uk/challenge/#difference

Useful Contacts

GeoVation
Ordnance Survey
Urban Innovation Centre
1 Sekforde Street
Clerkenwell Green
London
EC1R 0BE

E-Mail: challenge@geovation.uk

If you are interested please contact the funding development team within RKEO.

 

 

 

10 predictions for 2016

innovation, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team, Research news

nesta_logo
Nesta is an innovation charity with a mission to help people and organisations bring great ideas to life and have just published their  list of the trends, social movements and technological breakthroughs they believe will impact  lives over the next year.

This is the fifth annual prediction series published by Nesta , on the trends, social movements and technology breakthroughs set to impact our lives in the year ahead.

In 2016 cyber security will become a household concern, healthcare professionals will prescribe video games and small food producers will take on the supermarkets armed with better tech and valuable data. Check out this year’s list and find out what has been learnt from half a decade of Nesta predictions.

Smart 2015/2016 – R&D funding available

Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

Innovate 2011v4A grant scheme which offers funding to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to engage in R&D projects in the strategically important areas of science, engineering and technology.

The scheme supports SMEs carrying out R&D which offers potentially significant rewards and that could stimulate UK economic growth.

Three types of grant are available:
  • Proof of market
  • Proof of concept
  • Development of prototype.
Any UK SME undertaking research and development may apply; applications are accepted on a rolling basis for assessment by independent experts.
This call is currently open closing on 21 January 2016.

Contact a member of the funding development team if you have any questions .

 

Cross-platform production in digital media – up to £4m available

Business Engagement, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

theme - creative-digital
Innovate UK is to invest up to £4 million in collaborative R&D projects that stimulate innovation in the UK’s creative industries.
This competition aims to support projects that address convergence in digital media technologies. It covers film, television, online video, animation and video games, and includes pre- production, production and post- production processes, particularly for visual effects technologies.
Projects must be collaborative and led by a business. We expect to fund mainly industrial research projects. Small businesses could receive up to 70% of their eligible project costs, medium- sized businesses 60% and large businesses 50%.
We expect projects to range in size from total costs of £300,000 to £750,000, although we may consider projects outside this range.
The call is currently open , with registration closing on 23 December 2015 . The deadline for expressions of interest is at noon on 6 January 2016.

For more information on this call click here.

Contact a member of the funding development team if you have any questions .

Game Changing Technologies for the Energy Sector – Information Webinar

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

 

energy managementThe Knowledge Transfer Network is organising a webinar to promote a new Innovate UK competition that will open in 2016.

Innovate UK is allocating up to £1.5m for their “Energy Game Changer” competition. The funding will be allocated to feasibility studies led by SMEs who can provide disruptive solutions to long established challenges which currently cost the energy sector hundreds of millions of pounds per year.

Amongst the high level challenges where radical multi-disciplinary solutions are sought are:

  • improving condition monitoring, inspection, handling, characterisation and repair of energy assets
  • minimising the risk and cost of operating in remote and hazardous environments
  • generating and handling ‘big data’ to optimise performance, efficiency, safety and security
  • getting individuals and communities excited and engaged in energy reducing the consumers energy bills

To encourage radical change and new ideas, the competition is specifically looking for solutions from innovative SMEs whose main business is divorced from the energy sector and can look at the challenges from new perspectives. Such organisations may be engaged in activities such as; ICT, digital, design, electronics, sensors, modelling, virtual reality, gaming, robotics, UAVs, forensics, manufacturing, inspection and advanced materials.

We also welcome technology transfer ideas from other sectors such as; defence, automotive, medical, space and creative industries.

Innovate UK is looking to fund around 20 feasibility studies of between £50-100k in size and 6-12 month duration.

The information webinar will give you the opportunity to:

  • understand the background to the competition
  • hear about the specific challenges and competition scope in more detail
  • hear about the competitions eligibility criteria, application process, funding and timescales
  • ask online questions
  • network online
  • Further physical events are scheduled for 2016.

For more information and to register click here.

Key insights for the 2035 robot revolution: New report

innovation, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team

A “robot revolution” will transform the global economy over the next 20 years, cutting the costs of doing business but exacerbating social inequality, as machines take over everything, according to a new study by investment bank Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
“We are facing a paradigm shift which will change the way we live and work,” the authors say. “The pace of disruptive technological innovation has gone from linear to parabolic in recent years. Penetration of robots and artificial intelligence has hit every industry sector, and has become an integral part of our daily lives.”
The report outlines the opportunities for investors in robotics and artificial intelligence and cites recent research including Oxford University research that finds the coming revolution could leave up to 35% of all workers in the UK, and 47% of those in the US, at risk of being displaced by technology.